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Hermione rose .h once to leave and Hagrid decided to go with them, leaving Ron with his family.
"It's terrible," growled Hagrid into his beard, as the three ol them walked back along the corridor to the marble staircase. "Ml this new security, an kids are still gettin' hurt. . . .
Dumbledoiv's worried sick. . . . He don say much, but I can tell. . . ." "Hasn't he got any ideas, Hagrid." asked Hermione desperately.
"I spect he's got hundreds of ideas, brain like his," said Hagrid. "But he doesn' know who sent that necklace nor put poison in that wine, or they'dve bin caught, wouldn they.
Wha' worries me," said Hagrid, lowering his voice and glancing over his shoulder (Harry, for good measure, checked the ceiling for Peeves), "is how long Hogwarts can stay open if kids are bein' attacked. Chamber o' Secrets all over again, isn' it. There'll be panic, more parents takin their kids outta school, an nex' thing yeh know the board o' governors ..." Hagrid stopped talking as the ghost of a long-haired woman drifted serenely past, then resumed in a hoarse whisper, ". . . the board o' governors'll be talkin about shuttin' us up fer good." "Surely not." said Hermione, looking worried.
"Gotta see it from their point o' view," said Hagrid heavily. "I mean, it's always bin a bit of a risk sendin a kid ter Hogwarts, hasn’ it. Yer expect accidents, don' yeh, with hundreds of underage wizards all locked up tergether, but attempted murder, tha's tliff'rent. 'S'no wonder Dumbledore's angry with Sn —" Hagrid stopped in his tracks, a familiar, guilty expression on what was visible of his face above his tangled black beard.
"What." said Harry quickly. "Dumbledore's angry with Snape." "I never said tha’," said Hagrid, though his look of panic could not have been a bigger giveaway. "Look at the time, it's gettin' on fer midnight, I need ter —" "Hagrid, why is Dumbledore angry with Snape." Harry asked loudly.
"Shhhh!" said Hagrid, looking both nervous and angry. "Don’ shout stuff like that, Harry, d'yeh wan’ me ter lose me job. Mind, I don' suppose yeh'd care, would yeh, not now yeh've given up Care of Mag—" "Don't try and make me feel guilty, it wont work!" said Harry forcefully. "What's Snape done." "I dunno, Harry, I shouldn'ta heard it at all! I — well, I was comin’ outta the forest the other evenin’ an' I overheard 'em talking— well, arguin’. Didn't like ter draw attention to meself, so I sorta skulked an tried not ter listen, but it was a — well, a heated discussion an' it wasn’ easy ter block it out."
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